RANGOON — A Chin State Court has sentenced eight Chin rights activists to a US$30 fine each for holding a protest over an alleged rape attempt by a Burma Army soldier.

The court said on Wednesday that the activists—six men and two women—were guilty of violating the Peaceful Assembly Law’s Article 18, as they held an unauthorized protest.

Women’s rights campaign groups had asked the court to drop charges as the women are human rights activists who had sought official permission for the protest, but were turned down by local authorities.

“They are sentenced on Wednesday to a fine or one month imprisonment by the court in Chin State’s Matupi Township. Activists have chosen to pay the fine to avoid the prison sentences,” said Mai T. Sui Leng, director of Women’s Hand Myanmar Foundation, which assisted activists throughout the trial.

Ngai Sak, the activists’ lawyer, said, “Although the eight activists are sentenced for demonstrating without obtaining permission first in accordance with the law, they staged protests against sexual violence and to call for justice, which is the duty of officials.”

He added that she requested the court to consider punishing the activists with fines rather than prison sentences.

On June 10, a soldier from the Burma Army’s Light Infantry Battalion 269 allegedly attacked and attempted to rape a 55-year-old woman near Razua, Matupi Township, Chin State. According to a local women’s group, the victim was badly injured and admitted to hospital in Razua.

About 600 Chin women in total staged protests in both Razua and Matupi on June 23 and 24, demanding that the soldier, who has been arrested, be properly punished.

Eight activists from Razua Women’s group, Matupi Women’s Association and the Matupi Youth Association were charged separately on July 4 and July 16 for staging protests without permission in Razua and Matupi.

Burma’s government signed the Declaration of Commitment to End Sexual Violence in Conflict in London last month, but rights groups are openly questioning its commitment to implementing the declaration and have pointed to the case against the Chin activists as evidence of its intransigence.

Mai T. Sui Leng said that although the rape suspect was arrested it remains unclear what charges have been brought against him and how he will be punished as the military has taken over the case from the police.

“We would like to have justice since this is not the first time there has been a rape case by a soldier [in Chin State] and in the former cases there was no justice,” she said, adding that authorities “instead of delivering justice, punish those who ask for justice.

“It shouldn’t be like this; we feel unsafe and it is really unfair,” she added.

May Sabe Phyu, senior coordinator from Gender Equality Network, said that in Burma it is often human rights defenders who get punished, while those in power who commit rights abuses walk free. “The criminal in the recent case of attempted rape must be sentenced,” she said.

Where is hiding psy idiot wirathu who is interested in rape, marriage and sex. Psy wirathu should/speak out sympathy on Chin women who are raped by bama soldiers. However, psy wirathu is only care about bama women allegedly raped by local Muslim. Psy wirathu has double standard learned from fox than shwe’s Psudo-Buddhism.

Where is rule of law in Myanmar? The criminals are on the benches in the courts and the good people are tried as criminals. Criminals are roaming free and the good people are behind bars. Is it what the Myanmar way of Democracy?Actually, there demo-crazy in Myanmar, not Democracy.

Through out the history of Burma,every military regime or military control government can not provide the decent living for soldiers and their family.Low ranking soldiers are sufferings not only financial problem but also low moral.They brain wash the soldier as military is only saver for nation and military members are above the civilian.To make the soldiers to believes this,whenever soldier committed the minor crime they give immunity.
Military is invinciable or untouchable in Burma.Now,Saw Su try to change the game.If you believe something need to change,stand up and fight.

The thing that really stinks is that the Chin State Govt.is taking sides with the perpetrators and let them helps get away with their crime.Most of the Govt.is made up of the southerners (townships of Matupi,Midat,Kanpalet,Paletwa) and seemed to fear to loose their jobs.They are useless in protecting its peoples from its own constituencies and their court decision actually made the chin majorities’ jaws drop.Unbelievable.